VCT-backed DASH Water: turning wonky fruit into a 40% market share seltzer
In 2017, two 24-year-olds left their jobs at a large fruit-drinks producer to set up a company selling something unheard of: fizzy drinks without added sugars or sweeteners.
DASH Water (also known as DASH Drinks) is simply carbonated spring water infused with ‘rescued’ fruit and vegetables. The idea is to help save tonnes of misshapen produce bound for the waste heap because supermarkets won’t take them.
Beringea, manager of the ProVen VCTs, led DASH Water’s £8.7 million Series A round in 2022, investing £6 million to support its expansion across Europe and Australia. Today, the holding across the two VCTs is valued at £9.5 million (February 2025) – past performance is not a guide to the future.
DASH Water is now produced in the UK and Australia and sold in over 20 markets globally, by over 11,000 vendors like Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Starbucks and British Airways. It leads the seltzer category in the UK with over 40% market share.
It also has a host of celebrity fans. Victoria Beckham reportedly drinks as many as six cans a day of her favourite DASH Raspberry flavour. For her Paris Fashion Week show, she collaborated with DASH for cans to be branded ‘POSH’ and served as refreshment.
The company’s high-profile investors include ex-Ireland rugby captain Johnny Sexton, former Manchester United footballer Patrice Evra, and chairman David Milner, ex-CEO of Tyrrells crisps and Lily’s Kitchen pet food.
The founders – young entrepreneurs Jack Scott and Alex Wright – earned their place in Forbes’ 30 Under 30 Europe 2020. More recently, their company has entered the FT 1000 Europe 2025, having achieved CAGR of 74.3% between 2020 and 2023 – the fifth fastest-growing British food & beverage brand on the list.
What led to the idea for the company? What hurdles did the founders overcome as they grew their company? Why did Beringea invest – what potential opportunity does it see? How could you invest in similar companies through the ProVen VCTs?
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DASH’s growth journey
Founders Jack and Alex come from farming backgrounds. They saw first-hand how around a third of farmed produce is discarded for not fitting the right aesthetics, contributing to the more than one billion tonnes of food going to waste every year globally.
Whilst working together in the beverage industry, Jack and Alex began considering how they could save waste by repurposing “wonky” produce to create a drink that needed no added sweetener. To test the concept, they spent many weekends offering samples of fruit-infused water from a SodaStream to passers-by across London.
Then came the shock realisation it would cost £15 million to set up production. But the budding entrepreneurs pitched to Virgin Startup and won backing to gain a toehold on their dream. They also sought angel investors, who’ve since become mentors, sharing a strong interest in sustainability ethics and creating a category-disruptive product.
When the global pandemic happened, off-the-shelf sales suffered, so the founders started to focus their efforts online. This proved the right decision, as it led sales figures to more than double in 2020. The business also achieved its B Corp certification (for championing sustainable practices) that year. It saved 150 tonnes of wonky fruit in 2020 – and projected it would save 2500 tonnes by 2025.
Competitor seltzers have since launched in DASH’s wake – including from big multinational soft drinks manufacturers – but the brand aims to continue nurturing a strong bond with customers over a shared love of helping tackle food waste.
In early 2022, DASH began production outside the UK for the first time – in Australia, to supply the Asia Pacific.
The company expects to sell c.50 million cans in 2025, with a turnover of £42 million.
Why did the ProVen VCTs invest – and what is the potential opportunity?
The ProVen VCTs invested in 2022 to support DASH’s expansion in Europe and Australia.
Launched in 2000 and 2001, the ProVen VCTs focus on growth capital investments. They seek companies the manager believes have a proven commercial business and an exceptional team capable of taking the company to exit. The companies must be already profitable, or able to show a clear path to profitability. Manager Beringea will aim to be a key part of the team with significant influence in the business.
Beringea manages c.£330 million across the two ProVen VCTs. It also manages $470 million across four institutional funds in the US (October 2024). This international footprint could help facilitate a significant opportunity for DASH, as the seltzer category is forecast to be worth over £290 million in the UK alone in the next few years but is already a multibillion-dollar industry in the US.
The ProVen VCTs see tremendous potential in DASH. While seltzer is a multibillion-dollar industry in the US, it is a product that has vast potential for growth in the UK and Europe. As the UK’s leading seltzer, DASH is driving the rise of this increasingly valuable category. Its sustainable product, using wonky fruit and veg to reduce food waste, is resonating with consumers looking for a healthy, flavourful drink and we believe it can go from strength to strength.
How to invest in similar companies
The two ProVen VCTs – ProVen VCT (PVN) and ProVen Growth & Income VCT (PGI) – are currently open for investment.
Investors can get exposure to a portfolio of around 55 companies (February 2025) with a bias towards the consumer and B2B software sectors.
The VCTs target annual dividends of around 5% of NAV – dividends are variable and not guaranteed.
In the 10 years to March 2025, PVN and PGI have produced a NAV total return (including dividends) of 43.0% and 22.8% respectively. Over the five years to March 2025, returns were 27.4% and 24.1% respectively. Past performance is not a guide to the future.
See ProVen VCTs' performance
NAV and cumulative dividends per share (p)
Source: Morningstar. Performance figures are calculated net of fees, on a NAV to NAV basis. Past performance is no guide to the future. Dividends are variable and not guaranteed. The bar chart shows net asset value and cumulative dividends per share for the period 31/12/2019 - 31/03/2025.
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Alex Davies
Chief Executive
Alex was a board director at Hargreaves Lansdown, where he worked for 15 years. He was responsible for building Hargreaves Lansdown into the biggest direct-to-consumer SIPP provider in the UK with more than 150,000 clients and over £12 billion under management. He is a keen investor with a portfolio of shares, funds, student property, EIS and VCT investments.